Saturday, November 22, 2008

Louis XIV

Louis XIV of France is a very interesting man. He is known as the sun king and took to his thrown at the age of four. He ruled France and Navarre for many years, the longest European rule known. He ruled for 72 years, 3 months, and 18 days.

During his extremely long reign he established a court at Versailles, and brought absolute monarchy to its height in Europe. He was also known for fighting most of the other European contries in only four wars. At the begging of his rule the empire was led mainly by the chief minister Cardinal Mazarin. Louis was too young to rule by himself so the chief minister led the empire with the four year old at his side.

The middle of his rule he led by himself, effectively and without trouble. His last years, though were full of problems. The nick name "Sun King", came from a role he led on stage in Versailles. Versailles was one of his greatest achievements, and was even open to the public most of the week.

King Louis was also know for the building and blossoming of the theatre, music, architecture, painting, sculpture, and all the sciences. All of these accomplishments were shown on the cieling of the Hall of Mirrors. What an exremely effective man!

In conclusion, Louis XIV had many things to show for his extremly long reign. He showed his side of the arts and how talented he was. He also fought many wars and was also effective in the area of military.